‘Serve to Win’: Following the Novak Djokovic Diet

Aug 25, 2013 7:41 pm ET

Associated Press

Novak Djokovic eats a banana.

Novak Djokovic enters the U.S. Open as the No. 1 tennis player in the world. He credits his rise to the top on a gluten-free, dairy-free, idiosyncratic lifestyle that he details in his new book “Serve to Win.” Sara Germano and Jeremy Gordon are following Djokovic’s decrees to see if they have what it takes.

Here are Sara’s Day 1 notes:

Djokovic recommends a 14-day plan to achieve physical and mental excellence, but for budgetary reasons, I was limited to three days (8.8 ounces of manuka honey—a key component of the diet—costs about $25). Like Djokovic, I learned I was gluten intolerant several years ago and haven’t purposefully eaten a single crumb of wheat, barley, or rye products for nearly five years. But Djokovic’s diet plan presented several other critical challenges for me: I am hopelessly addicted to caffeine, and love cheese, both forbidden. Unfortunately, I also don’t have a personal chef.

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